When my dear husband introduced me to Pat and Jook and their gem of a restaurant more than a decade ago, he also introduced me to what would become one of my biggest culinary obsessions: sticky rice. The first time I had sticky rice at the Weang Ping, and still, every time subsequently, I stuff myself silly as though I there might not ever be another grain of sticky rice in my future. To say that I like it is a complete understatement.
Sticky rice is often served in Northern Thailand alongside a meal (elsewhere in the country, you see it mainly only as a dessert with fresh mango). In Laos, however, sticky rice is a staple. It is served at every meal; most Lao people have it for breakfast dipped in spicy chili paste, and as an accompaniment to every other soup, curry and grilled dish eaten throughout the day. In fact, in the poor country of Laos, oftentimes sticky rice is the only thing a person might eat all day long (yes - malnutrition is rampant). But while there, I was in heaven. I ate sticky rice like a local - meaning at every opportunity and damn near at every meal.
Needless to say, I came home with a sticky rice steamer contraption and a serving basket in tow. I am now able to feed my sticky rice obsession on a whim.
A couple things to note if you want to venture down the sticky rice-making road:
- Sticky rice requires a short-grained "sweet" rice variety; it's got a high level of starch, resulting in the fabulous sticky quality that makes it so unique.
- You have to soak the sweet rice ahead of time - I usually give mine a good 24-hour soak to soften it up and allow it to absorb a good amount of water.
- You have to steam the rice to achieve the sticky texture. Some people claim you can make it stove top or in a rice cooker, but I have never had good success with either of those methods. The cone-shaped steamer thingy exists for a reason.
So even if you don't make the sticky rice (foolish...), I encourage you to give this cilantro sauce a try. Spread it atop a grilled chicken breast or a juicy steak - delish.
Lime/Cilantro Sauce
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeds and ribs removed (optional)
- 1 cup cilantro leaves and stems
- The juice of 1 fresh-squeezed lime
- 2 cloves of garlic, smashed
- 2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce (nam pla or nuoc mam)
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Hey! I'm all aboput sticky mango rice! So i have decided to make it for a huge family reunion (all Mexicans so I'll introduce them to Thai desserts!) Do you recommed any palce to get a big bamboo steamer around SF, East Bay...I really don't want to spend a lot on a big fancy all purpose steamer, and specially after reading your experiments with them and your recommendation about using the bamboo one!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
Hey Andrea! I would certainly try Ranch 99 in Richmond first - that place has everything!
ReplyDelete